The subcontractor has been working diligently to get the forms in place before they pour concrete tomorrow. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe forms for the basement. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe subcontractor and his crew working diligently. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe view from inside the walls, looking north. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe view from inside the walls, … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 107
A lot can happen in a few days. The first round of cement has been poured, and the frost wall is in. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe frost wall on Wednesday. The forms for the basement went up at the end of the week. They are ready for the next stage — pouring the cement. (C) … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 106
The forms for the footings are down, and the first inspection has been performed. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe forms for the frost wall and the footers. Yesterday, concrete for the frost wall and footers went in. According to our subcontractor, they should be done pouring the forms by the end of next week. (C) 2022, … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 105
The countdown begins. Tomorrow is the day our house construction is supposed to start. Last week, First Reader, Best Riding Buddy, and I took a motorcycle ride up to see our new home one more time and pinch ourselves again to make it feel real. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunFirst Reader by the front half of … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 104
This week we spent part of a day on the property getting the last of the repairs done to our water system. The output valve had wholly melted away in the fire, along with about a foot of piping. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunThe outlet from our water cistern. Unfortunately, the original outlet was threaded PVC … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 103
Even though we have our building permit in hand, it seems like nothing has really changed. Our next hill will be work crews, materials, and additional equipment as we compete with others rebuilding from recent fires and floods. With our project about to ramp up, we’ve been a little busier than usual with clean-up activities … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 102
Tuesday morning, two months and twenty-six days after filing our application, we received word that our building permit was approved. It was entering the final stage of issuance—processing the last of the paperwork by dotting all the ‘t’s and crossing all the ‘i’s, then printing out the official piece of paper. By noon, I was … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 101
Another week and we’re still stuck in Permit Approval Hell. We seem caught in the middle of an ongoing dispute between the county and our builder. Isn’t that special? 🙄 Despite the continuing delays, we made it up to the property this week to clear weeds and try to pull more nails and other tire … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 100
We are SO close to having our permit I could spit. We found out Friday morning, the day the final engineering note was turned over to the building department, that the engineer approving our paperwork works four 10-hour days. Monday through Thursday. Isn’t that just freaking special? 🙄 One thing we did manage to get … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 99
This week, we’ve been getting some much-needed wind therapy in South Dakota. I had my computer with me to keep an eye on my email, just in case something happened. While we’re away, I’ll leave you some pictures of our site preparation. (C) 2022, JJ ShaunGetting ready to construct ... (C) 2022, JJ ShaunWhile we … Continue reading Rebuilding the Dream, Pt 98
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